This day in history

[June 19, 2009]  (AP)  Today is Friday, June 19, the 170th day of 2009. There are 195 days left in the year.

Today's highlight in history:

On June 19, 1865, Union troops commanded by Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, with news that the Civil War was over, and that all remaining slaves in Texas were free.

On this date:

In 1862, slavery was outlawed in U.S. territories.

In 1910, Father's Day was celebrated for the first time, in Spokane, Wash.

In 1917, during World War I, King George V ordered the British royal family to dispense with German titles and surnames; the family took the name "Windsor."

In 1934, the Federal Communications Commission was created; it replaced the Federal Radio Commission.

In 1938, four dozen people were killed when a railroad bridge in Montana collapsed, sending a train known as the "Olympian" hurtling into Custer Creek.

In 1952, the celebrity-panel game show "I've Got A Secret" made its debut on CBS-TV with Garry Moore as host.

In 1953, Julius Rosenberg, 35, and his wife, Ethel, 37, convicted of conspiring to pass U.S. atomic secrets to the Soviet Union, were executed at Sing Sing Prison in Ossining, N.Y.

In 1964, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was approved by the Senate, 73-27, after surviving a lengthy filibuster.

In 1977, Pope Paul VI proclaimed a 19th-century Philadelphia bishop, John Neumann, the first male U.S. saint.

In 1986, University of Maryland basketball star Len Bias, the first draft pick of the Boston Celtics, suffered a fatal cocaine-induced seizure.

Ten years ago: Author Stephen King was seriously injured when he was struck by a van driven by Bryan Smith on a two-lane highway in North Lovell, Maine. Britain's Prince Edward married commoner Sophie Rhys-Jones in Windsor, England. The Dallas Stars won the Stanley Cup in triple overtime by defeating the Buffalo Sabres 2-1 in Game 6. Turin, Italy, was chosen as the site of the 2006 Winter Olympic Games.

Five years ago: The U.S. military stepped up its campaign against militant leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, launching an airstrike that pulverized a suspected hideout in Fallujah, Iraq.

One year ago: President George W. Bush surveyed the aftermath of devastating floods during a quick tour of the Midwest, assuring residents and rescuers alike that he was listening to their concerns and understood their exhaustion. Democrat Barack Obama announced he would bypass public financing for the presidential election, even though Republican John McCain was accepting it.

Today's birthdays: Actress Gena Rowlands is 79. Singer Spanky McFarlane (Spanky and Our Gang) is 67. Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi is 64. Actress Phylicia Rashad is 61. Rock singer Ann Wilson (Heart) is 59. Musician Larry Dunn is 56. Actress Kathleen Turner is 55. Country singer Doug Stone is 53. Singer Mark DeBarge is 50. Singer-dancer-"American Idol" judge Paula Abdul is 47. Actor Andy Lauer is 46. Rock singer-musician Brian Vander Ark (Verve Pipe) is 45. Rock musician Brian "Head" Welch is 39. Actress Robin Tunney is 37. Actor Bumper Robinson is 35. Actress Poppy Montgomery is 34. Alt-country singer-musician Scott Avett (The Avett Brothers) is 33. Actress Zoe Saldana is 31. Actress Lauren Lee Smith is 29. Actor Paul Dano is 25.

Thought for today: "Free thinkers are generally those who never think at all." -- Laurence Sterne, English author (1713-1768)

[Associated Press]

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